Updated: Serena ends US Open hopes

Ana's US Open came to an end with a disappointing 6-2, 6-4 third round loss to Serena Williams. It was a sub-par performance from the US Open Series champion, but Williams must be given credit for the manner in which she grabbed the initiative in most rallies and imposed her game on the 18-year-old.

The former world No.1 was excellent. She showed no signs of the rustiness one would expect from a player who has competed in just four tournaments this year as pressured Ana from the very first game.

Ana struggled to cope with the 24-year-old’s pace of play and took some time to settle. The first set lasted just 24 minutes and was devoid of any lengthy rallies.

The seven-time Grand Slam champion continued to attack Ana’s serve – the youngster made five doubles faults and no aces – in the second set and threatened to grab an early break. Ana resisted until the fifth game when Williams produced several punishing returns of serve.

However, Ana scored her first break of the match in the following game as she crushed a huge inside-out forehand winner. The youngster was finally into the match and at 40-15 in the following game the outlook had changed. Unfortunately for Ana, it was then that she chose to play one of her worst shots of the match, a limp attempted dropshot that failed to get over the net.

Williams, great champion as she is, seized on the opportunity and broke again. Serve matched serve thereafter and the American, who produced the fastest delivery of the tournament with a 124mph ace, closed out the match after 66 frantic minutes.

Ana looked a different player during her doubles match with Maria Kirilenko, which took place within an hour of her singles defeat. Resuming their rain-delayed first round match, the teenagers beat Yulia Beygelzimer and Vera Dushevina 6-4, 6-2.

Ana and Maria will play fifth seeds Anna-Lena Groenefeld and Meghann Shaughnessy in the second round tomorrow. The match is scheduled as the fourth on Court 4 and is expected to begin sometime after 4pm local time (10pm Central European Time).